


Make a Move, and Make it Now

by mamahl9711



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Nightmares, Pining, Pre-Relationship, vulnerable cat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-30
Updated: 2017-09-30
Packaged: 2019-01-07 09:45:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12230379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mamahl9711/pseuds/mamahl9711
Summary: Vulnerable is not a word used to describe Cat Grant.  Arrogant?  Yes.  Bossy?  Yes.  Cold-hearted bitch?  Definite possibility.  But never vulnerable, which is why Kara has no idea what to do next.Or that time Cat had a nightmare and Kara was there to comfort her.





	Make a Move, and Make it Now

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own
> 
> One-shot for now, but we'll see.

Kara glanced over to Cat’s office.  It was late, and Cat had decided to stay until she had successfully put out all of the fires and personally corrected each and every layout for the next issue of the Tribune.  Especially after the last issue where they were not only scooped by Lois-fucking-Lane, but they also were forced to issue a correction for their front-page story because no one thought it was important to check the facts.  Cat had nearly fired the entire staff over the whole disaster, but for better or worse, Kara talked some sense into the CEO when she reminded Cat that breaking in new employees might actually be more difficult than attempting to teach her current staff how to be competent employees of CatCo. 

There were layouts and articles scattering the floor of Cat’s office.  For the last few hours, Cat had been on the floor examining and editing each and every story and layout in front of her.  Cat’s goal was to have everything done by the next morning so her staff could read through her in-depth edits, correct the issues, and get the final layouts to Cat before the end of the day.  After working non-stop for hours, Cat had decided to take a nap on her couch in the hopes that it would help her get through the atrocious lifestyle section.  Kara watched the woman’s chest rise and fall and listened to soothing sounds of her heart beating, more relaxed than Kara had ever heard.  Not that Kara paid attention to her boss’s breathing or heartbeat on a regular basis.  That would be completely inappropriate, not to mention totally creepy. 

Cat had urged Kara to leave earlier in the night.  She didn’t have much for Kara to do and felt badly keeping the girl so late.  But, Kara quickly assured Cat that she would be staying as long as Cat would be.  It’s not like Kara really needed much sleep to function, and there was no way she was leaving her boss, Queen of All Media, alone in the middle of the night in an empty office.  Maybe Kara was being overprotective, but after all of the aliens, meta-humans, and other threats she had dealt with recently, Kara felt it necessary to stay and watch over her boss.  Deciding that Cat was fine for the moment, Kara went to the break room to make a fresh batch of coffee, anticipating Cat’s need for it once she woke up.  Though Cat preferred steaming hot lattes, Kara didn’t have access to an espresso machine at 11:30 pm on a Tuesday.  Closing her eyes, Kara took a moment to relax as the coffee began to brew and the smell filled the room.  And, a moment was all she had because in the next, she heard Cat screaming. 

Kara was back in Cat’s office at a speed unknown to man, ready to fight off anything that dare threaten Cat Grant’s safety.  Instead of finding the older woman in trouble, however, Kara found Cat sitting up, with her feet on the couch and her knees to her forehead, like she was trying to hide from a monster under her bed – or couch, as it were.  Kara could hear Cat’s heart, still alive with panic.  It took Kara a minute to realize that Cat must have had a nightmare because never had it ever occurred to her that her hero, the infamous Cat Grant, would be so afraid of something that it could haunt her dreams.  Kara slowly walked over to the couch from where she had been standing in the doorway.  She was unsure of what to do next, mentally debating whether Cat would want physical comfort or fire her for even trying.  A second later, the decision was made, as Cat released a quiet sob.  Kara could not just stand by idly, so she gingerly sat next to Cat and softly placed a hand on her back as she whispered the other woman’s name.  “Ms. Grant?”  Cat didn’t respond, but she didn’t move away either.  In an effort to soothe her, Kara began to slowly rub Cat’s back. 

They sat like that for a while, with Cat crying and Kara rubbing her back.  Once Cat’s tears had dried, the woman took a deep breath and sat up, putting her feet on the ground.  After another beat, she faced Kara for the first time since waking.  Kara’s heart sunk as she looked into Cat’s eyes, glassy and red from crying for so long.  Kara was at a complete loss for what to say or do to comfort Cat because Cat was… vulnerable.  Over a year at Cat’s side, and that is the one emotion that Kara had never seen from her boss.  The silence stretched between them until finally Cat spoke.

“It was about Leslie,” she said as she looked away. Supergirl had defeated Livewire months before, so Kara wasn’t really expecting the woman to be behind Cat’s turmoil.  Cat bit her lip like she wanted to say more, so Kara remained silent.  “I still can’t believe I did that to her.”  Cat’s voice broke at the end, and she looked up as tears began to fall once more. 

This time, Kara didn’t think.  She moved closer and set a hand on Cat’s knee.  “It wasn’t your fault.”

Cat snapped back to look at Kara.  “The hell it wasn’t!  I…I…” As quickly as she began, Cat deflated, unable to convey just how responsible she felt.

“How often?” Kara asked tentatively, her hand still on Cat’s knee.  She hadn’t considered the impact that the Livewire situation had on her boss.  Cat Grant was nothing if not professional, which meant that as soon as Livewire was captured, Cat was back at work.  She took no time to herself and acted as if nothing was amiss.  Kara should have known better.

“A bit at first.  Now, not quite as much, but I still don’t sleep well.”  Kara ached to hold Cat, to vow to protect her from everything.  She wanted to apologize for everything that Cat had been going through, for not being able to truly save Leslie from the storm, for causing this whole situation, but the words just wouldn’t come.  Cat was doing her best to calm down from the fear and guilt that still gripped her, taking deep breaths with her eyes closed. 

“Cat…why haven’t you said anything?  I could have –“

Cat laughed.  “What?  What could you have possibly done?”  Cat took Kara’s hand in her own and looked at her assistant.  “While I appreciate all you do for me, this is something that I just have to deal with on my own.”

Kara’s heart broke at the thought of Cat being so alone, especially after an episode like tonight.  “No, Cat.  You’re wrong.  This is something that you absolutely do not have to deal with on your own.  In fact, talking about it is going to help so much more than bottling it up.”

Cat just looked at Kara for a bit, like she was deciding whether or not to say something.  Just when Kara was ready to break the unbearable silence between them, Cat spoke.  “Why do you?  Bottle it up, I mean?”

“I’m not entirely sure what you’re talking about, Cat.”

“I’m talking about your parents… your planet… You’ve been through so much, but how often do you talk about it?”

“That’s… I’m not…” Kara frantically searched for the words to once again assure Cat that she is not Supergirl.  But, one look at the other woman’s face stopped her in her tracks.  Cat was trying.  She was sad and vulnerable but had yet to put her walls back up.  She trusted Kara, and Kara knew that she could do the same.  She took a breath and began again.  “It’s different.  I don’t feel as though I can ever really talk about my past with anyone.  Even the people that know who I am… They don’t understand what it’s like to lose everything in a single moment – your family, your friends, your language, your culture.  When I came to Earth, _everything_ was different and just… wrong.  But, I could never really express that to others.  There aren’t words for that kind of loss, for what it feels like to not even recognize the sky above you.” 

Kara didn’t look at Cat when she spoke.  It was always hard to think about Krypton and her family.  But, when the blonde squeezed her hand, Kara finally met her eyes.  She was waiting for Cat to barrage her with questions, used to the other woman’s reporter instincts at this point.  Instead, Cat surprised her with only one.  “What do you do when you have nightmares?”

“Um, well, now, I fly.  I fly fast and high and try to block out the rest of the world.  Before I was Supergirl, I would paint.”

“You paint?” Cat said with a smile. 

Kara ducked her head and let out an embarrassed chuckle because for some unknown reason Cat Grant is actually interested in knowing more about her.  “Um, yeah.  I mean, I’m not great by any means.  I mostly just dabble here and there, nothing too special.”

“How long have you painted for?”

“I started not long after I landed on Earth.  Back on Krypton, my family was filled with scientists and political leaders.  I wasn’t really given a chance to explore art.  But, when I first came to Earth, I didn’t handle things well.  I had all of these new powers to deal with as well as an entirely new world to get accustomed to.  Eliza bought me a sketchbook and drawing became a release of sorts.  Eventually, I got into painting and decided I like that medium a lot more than just sketching, but it’s been one of the only constants I’ve had in dealing with everything.  It helps.” 

Cat was quiet for a moment, still holding onto Kara’s hand.  “Will you teach me?”

“I’m sorry?” Because there is no way in hell that Cat Grant was asking her to –

“Will you teach me to paint?”  Okay, so maybe she was.

“Sure, if you’d like,” Kara agreed because she can never really find it in her to deny Cat.

“I would.  Very much,” Cat said with a small smile, one Kara hadn’t seen before.  Cat broke eye contact first and looked down to the floor with a sigh.  “I suppose I should get back to work.”

“What if I grab us coffee and then come and help?  You’ve always said I have a good eye for layouts, and that way you might be able to get home at some point before work starts tomorrow morning.”

“Okay,” Cat conceded, too tired to argue against it.  When the two stood, they reluctantly let their hands go as well, both immediately missing the contact.  Kara didn’t let her thoughts linger on this too much.  Or the fact that she agreed to spending one-on-one time with her boss.  Her very beautiful, very single boss that now knew just about every secret Kara had.  Kara sighed as she made her way to the break room and poured coffee into two mugs.  It was no use trying to deny it to herself anymore.  She had feelings for Cat Grant; the most unattainable person Kara could possibly have feelings for.  Kara knew that tonight was a turning point for her.  Before, she could write off her feelings as admiration or hero-worship.  Now, she knew better, which made it that much harder to work alongside the other woman.  Rao, it was going to be a long night. 


End file.
